Ghost in the Shell (2026) Ep.09 - Motoko going rogue. Who is behind this?

Episode 9 of Ghost in the Shell (2026) continues from where we left off, with Motoko being targeted by a deliberate media smear campaign designed to frame her as a criminal after the leak of a video, putting her at risk of being arrested or, more likely, killed in the process.

The situation clearly follows a step-by-step plan orchestrated from up above, with videos appearing and multiple incidents all being connected back to her, even if she had nothing to do with them. Add on top of that a complete farce of a legal process, with everyone seemingly in cahoots to prove her guilty, and you know where this is going.

This was the moment where I went, wait is that Motoko or is that Puppet Master? If she did it on purpose then Motoko is a great actress.

I still can't get over watching Togusa being the 'joke character' when he was one of the most serious of the original series with his attachment to humanity.

Of course, Motoko isn't going to just sit there and take it; she deserts Section 9 with the help of Aramaki and becomes a fugitive wanted by the entire government. This leads to a series of great scenes where Motoko fools the police trying to capture her, while Aramaki enjoys the spectacle, feigning detachment by claiming she's just "a former subordinate."

The interrogation scene, where Motoko's eyes go blank and she starts talking like a machine, was quite creepy, and I'm not sure if it's really Motoko talking. Is she just acting like that, or is it the Puppet Master? Aramaki seems to smile, so I'm guessing it's Motoko, but still...

The storytelling is intentionally ambiguous here to give us time to think about it. This adaptation has generally been less straightforward than Stand Alone Complex and more akin to the original movie (even if Motoko is usually a lot more fun here).

There has been quite a lack of Fuchikoma in recent episodes. I do understand that they don't fit as well into more serious episodes, but I still feel a bit sad about it. They usually add that little extra touch to whatever scene they're in, whether through small interactions with each other or with humans.

Watching Motoko in other outfits is always great, but it feels 'off' when I see her in such a formal attire, it just doesn't fit her.

This is more similar to her usual style and still feels 'heavy' compared to the usual Motoko. I guess we got spoiled by those body suits.

The question is, where do we go from here? The next episode is supposedly the epilogue of this chapter, as indicated by the title "Brain Drain III + Ghost Coast + Epilogue," but I have no idea how they will resolve the situation with the Puppet Master inside Motoko, recover her standing, and defuse the whole ordeal.